The Last Army I'll Ever Do (and other things)

[Calibanite Knight Angel]

Today I wish to talk about theming (don't worry there will be an actual update with painted space marines in the near future). My Minotaurs army is themed around the Orphean War, as is my Krieg Army. I am a big fan of this campaign - and I very much approach my models these days with the perspective of a historical wargamer, keen to recreate that specific campaign. That's why (as I may have mentioned previously) I am going to have my Minotaurs, Krieg, Necromundans, and Ordo Xenos Inquisitors all collected and painted up to be themed around the conflict (I also have plans for a Necron army to act as an OpFor, and to build a large terrain collection themed around all the different warzones).

 

Since my army is themed around the conflict, that makes Sergeant Kraatos right at home leading his Devastator Squad. And Sergeant Thoul leading his Vanguard Veteran Squad. But what if there was a way to modularly make my Orphean War-themed Minotaurs army a Badab War-themed Minotaurs army?

 

Well, firstly, Kraatos wouldn't be around then. And Thoul would be a Sternguard Veteran Squad Sergeant rather than a Vanguard Veteran Squad Sergeant. As such, I fully intend to have an alternate Devastator Sergeant and Vanguard Veteran Sergeant for when my army is representing the Minotaurs during the Badab War. Since I also want to add a Sternguard Veteran Squad to my army regardless, I will have Thoul leading the squad when it is themed around the Badab War, and can swap him out with another Sergeant to suddenly theme the squad around the Orphean War. It's the little details like this that really aren't for anyone else - but rather are for me, as I'm passionate about theming my army around specific campaigns in a way that *feels* true and authentic to me.

 

It is also why I am going to avoid any bodies/army-related debris on the bases. This way, the Minotaurs could be fighting against/alongside any army. This means my Librarian will need to lose the lasgun on his base (easy fix). Fortunately, the Badab War and Orphean War are both big enough, with a diverse enough range of battlefields, that the rock-themed bases of my Imperial forces would fit in fine with the theme - its not like those conflicts were restricted to one environment.

 

Stay tuned for more Minotaurs coming soon.

 

 

Now onto the second thing I wanted to discuss today.

 

 

I'm a really big fan of this book. I love it. I remember being engrossed in the lore when I found it in a second-hand bookshop when I was around 10, and my appreciation of it has only grown since. It has inspired my imagination and desire to collect themed forces these last few years in a way that I don't think any other non-Imperial Armour/Horus Heresy-related book has. And looking at how it sets up a *massive* scale war, then leaves it to the players to resolve? There's actually a lot of similarities there between IA 12: The Fall of Orpheus and this.

 

There is also the appeal of, for many years, this could be considered the end point of 40k chronology. It is the big finale, the 13th Black Crusade could see the doom of the Imperium and the ultimate victory of Chaos. EVERYTHING is at stake. I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan of their do-over of this at the end of 7th (to each their own, I know a lot of people love that version, which is cool), so I prefer to go off this and still consider this the end point of 40k chronology for my intents and purposes.

 

Why am I talking about this?

 

Well firstly, for a few years now I have wanted to build a Cadian Imperial Guard force themed around this. It would use the 5th edition codex, but use this book as inspiration and a loose guide of possible directions to take the force in. Now, I still want to put together a Cadian force (using the models they discontinued a couple of years ago, the ones that were around for 20 years), but I want to use those models for Orphean War-themed Necromundans* more (however never say never to be doing those Cadians).

 

But even more than that, I have the desire to revisit my oldest armies, to "finish" them. These were models I painted as a kid. So it is possible I will repaint some models, as I am a much better painter now, but that is all in service of staying faithful to my original vision for them as a kid. But now there is a new vision too. The part of me that loves to theme armies around specific campaigns.

 

The two Space Marine armies I was thinking of "finishing" in the near-ish future are my Dark Angels and Ultramarines (my 40k ones, not my 30k ones).

 

And guess what? According to the third edition lore in Codex: Eye of Terror, the entire Dark Angels chapter was there, and one "Honour Company" (IDK what that means) of Ultramarines was there too. So I have decided to focus on revisiting my Dark Angels, and will work on the Ultramarines later (I am thinking of theming them around Ichar IV).

 

So what will this involve? I will be touching up or outright re-painting some of my old Dark Angels (although am content with them being painted to less high of a standard than I may strive for if it was a new army I was painting), as well as hopefully adding some new models to the army! I'll give a breakdown of what I've got in a later post, but to give a hint, it is led by Azrael (the old metal model), which may just be my favourite 40k model of all! One thing I will have to do, though: some models have accessories (e.g. heads on bases) themed around specific enemies - they will be removed.

 

But this got me real excited - what else can I throw into this project?

 

Well back in 2011 (when their 5th edition Codex came out), I had a brief Grey Knights phase. I only have a couple of squads plus Kaldor Draigo. I don't really have plans to do anything for Draigo right now (hey, maybe he can come into play if I am switching it up to theme them around the Pandorax campaign instead), but I think this is a great chance to finish off those Grey Knights units - with the 13th Black Crusade theme! Seeing them referred to in the order of battle in the Eye of Terror campaign book is what gave me the idea.

 

But wait, there's more! 

 

Remember that Eldar Farseer I posted a few years back? What if that Farseer is part of an Ulthwé Seer Council? Alright, time to get the rest of the council and perhaps a couple of Eldar units to go with it.

 

*Remember those Necromundans I mentioned? Codex: Eye of Terror mentions Necromundans being present. So I will be able to pull them off their Orphean War duties to fulfill their 13th Black Crusade duties as I please.

 

Now let's look at the Chaos side.

 

I have an entire Dark Vengeance box full of Chaos models I never painted. Alright, these guys can be Black Legion - and the cultists could easily be put into a Lost & The Damned army. I'd also like to get the old Abaddon model at some point (the one everyone says loses his arms always), and expand the Black Legion into a small force. I also have the old Iron Warriors Warsmith - if I still have energy for this project, I might get him a squad of Chaos Space Marines or two and a tank to accompany him. I think Iron Warriors would be fun to kitbash with 30k Space Marines. I even have a single Death Guard model - unsure if I would get any more, but maybe that will mean a Plague Marine unit at some point.

 

I'm legitimately really excited to be doing this second themed project on the side of my Orphean War project, and to be giving some of my oldest models a new theme and purpose.

[Calibanite Knight Angel]

Hey everyone, I hope everyone has been having a good couple of days :)

 

I wanted to make one last post for the year, and so I thought it would be a good chance to show everyone some of the old Space Marines I painted when I was younger! But I would say my memory of how well I had painted these models was somewhat rose-tinted. My Minotaurs are very unimpressively painted, and its the kind of thing where, if I was starting the army now, I would be holding myself to a MUCH higher standard. Fortunately I find them acceptable and I'm still legitimately happy with how they worked out - once they have the transfers on them I feel like they come together nicely all the same.

 

I wish to apologise in advance for any poor picture quality.

 

Here is a Tactical Squad, painted back in early 2014 (I would have been 14 at the time):

 

As you may be able to tell, the Sergeant has the black helmet stripe of a Sergeant. Here is a closer look at him and one of his men. I would spend ages studying the artwork of the Minotaurs featured in the Imperial Armour books, which is why we see a stripe on the chainsword. I believe the rocks on the bases of all my miniatures that have them were bird seed - I might have to look into getting some of that, so that I can base the models I'll be painting in the present day in a consistent way. 

 

The transfers are from the old (now discontinued unfortunately) Minotaurs transfer sheet from Forge World. I also have the Minotaurs etched brass sheet sheet, which we might see at some point in the future. I remember choosing the Plasma Gun for the first squad because I thought "I'm depicting them fighting Necrons, and this is a chapter that frequently fights other Space Marines. So that makes sense in the same way as it makes sense for the Dark Angels to be using all this Plasma weaponry".

 

You know what? I love these models and am proud of them. The more time I spend with them, the easier it is to let go of my modern standards for myself and criticism of my own work (even on the best paint jobs I have ever done, I have immediately been critical of them) and accept that, yeah, these are actually Space Marines I'm happy with. And they are going to stay as they are. Shout out to my Minotaurs army. Something you may notice is that there are a lot of Space Marines that can be described as "Mark VII Space Marine with Bolter firing, or getting ready to fire". That was by design - I wanted to have large numbers of what I would consider "default" Space Marines, and have them in poses that can easily look like they are in the midst of battle. However, as we can see below, the Astartes with the Mark VI Armour pieces has drawn his knife - I imagine he finds himself in a situation where he is engaged in melee, and the enemy isn't giving him enough space to be able to aim his Bolter at them. 

 

Now we get to the last two members of the first Tactical Squad. I know what you are thinking: "I've never seen a Tactical Squad with a MISSILE LAUNCHER before!"

 

All jokes aside, we will see a few more missile launchers in this army, but other Tactical Squads have other heavy weapons too. I like to mix it up. But the Missile Launcher is always a solid choice for Tactical Squads.

 

Here are two yet-to-be-finished Minotaurs Sergeants from other Tactical Squads. They also have the black stripe, but note that they have Red shoulder pads (veteran marking). The Forge World books actually depict a mix of (non-1st Company) Sergeants with the standard bronze, and with the Veteran red. So in my army, there will be a mix of both for Sergeants. When it comes to playing the game (keeping in mind I would be using primarily 5th/6th/7th edition Codexes (Codices?), the ones with bronze shoulder pads count as regular Space Marine Sergeants, while the red shoulder pads gives them the "Veteran Sergeant" upgrade.

 

I'm excited to use the Bronze chapter symbol (the one that goes on red Veteran shoulder pads), as outside the officers and the 1st Company squads in my army, these Veteran Sergeants are my chance to use them.

 

Here we have Ivanus Enkomi, Reclusiarch of the Minotaurs, and Lord Asterion Moloc, Chapter Master of the Minotaurs.

 

I absolutely love these models - I would have painted them in 2014 too, or early 2015 at the latest? I was pleased with how they turned out back then, and I'm pleased with it now - something I always found was that I had an easier time painting a lot of Forge World models than I did with plastic models. I guess the FW models were designed in a way that (to me) really guided when I was painting them. These have always been two of my favourite 40k models.

 

 

I always loved running Moloc - he would be accompanied by a squad of 5 Assault Terminators (they were missing their storm shields, as I was waiting to get a 3rd party set - which I ultimately did end up getting a few years ago, so will have to finish them off sometime!). I think he may have given the whole army "Preferred Enemy: Codex Space Marines, Dark Angels, Blood Angels, Space Wolves, and Grey Knights" from memory.

 

However, most of the time (unless it was a bigger game), I would run Enkomi as my warlord - he always looked so cool leading a Tactical Squad into action! Plus, his Power Fist allowed him to fight tanks!

 

 

 

Now that I have shown everyone some Minotaurs, I'd like to talk about my Dark Angels. Now unfortunately, a lot of the ones I painted years ago just don't hold up to my current standards - and its not a case of it being like the Minotaurs, where these days I would paint the army differently if I was starting it now, but am perfectly happy with where they are at regardless. No, some of the Dark Angels are just not at a level I am happy with - so I may be repainting them in the future. But this remains to be seen.

 

But on the other hand, there are some Dark Angels that I am perfectly happy with, and will not be changing in any way, shape or form. And I'm about to show you some of them :)

 

I would also like to note that, whereas my Minotaurs and Krieg Guardsmen have brown around the edges of their bases, my Dark Angels have black. When I did my Dark Angels, I thought black around the bases was the coolest thing ever - by the time I moved onto the Minotaurs, I had reconsidered (thus the brown). But I think this is great for theming. My Minotaurs, Krieg, and any other Orphean War-themed forces will have brown around the edge of their base, whilst any 13th Black Crusade-themed forces (my Dark Angels, Grey Knights, etc) will have black around the edge of their bases!

 

 

First, lets talk about Asmodai. I absolutely loved the 6th edition model when it came out, and knew I had to get it! I don't even think I used him in games much - it was just from the perspective of I liked the character and the model and the theme. Which to me, is the main reason I do anything with my 40k armies. I believe I painted him back in 2013, the same year the model came out.

 

(You can't see from the angle and shadow of the picture, but I did actually paint his helmet's eye lenses!)

 

Next, we have Azrael (plus his Watcher in the Dark companion).

 

I believe I painted him in either 2013 or 2014. A fun fact about this model is that he is older than I am - I believe he is from 1996. One of my friends had fun pointing that out when I first got him! But what amazed me - I thought he looked so cool, you couldn't even tell! the only giveaway to me was the bright colour paints used on his weapons in the official photos indicated the era the model originated from.

 

To me, this model has aged real well. I was actually waiting for him to get a Finecast re-release, as I figured he would be less heavy than if it was the metal model (I was real concerned about his back banner tipping him over). But ultimately I got the metal model, and didn't regret it (I'm not sure if he even ever got a Finecast release, or was just metal up until he got replaced by the Primaris model?).

 

As soon as I got this model and painted it, I knew he was one of my favourite 40k characters. And you know what? That still holds true to this day.

 

I know there is much discourse around the lore of The Lion Helm, people wondering "How could a helmet big enough for a Primarch fit on Azrael's smaller Astartes-size head?" This isn't something I'm terribly invested in emotionally and am fine with whatever the answer is, but it is fun to think about! I think, for me, it falls into one of two options:

-Either it WAS a helmet the Lion once wore, but has been modified to fit a Space Marine properly. Maybe even the entire outer shell is different, and its just some of the internal systems that have been removed from the original and fitted into a newer, Artificier-wrought helmet.

-Or it was not actually worn by the Lion, and the Dark Angels just think it was. I actually think this would be quite fun.

But I think any answer is fine! Or even better, no answer - just let it be a fun little thing the fans think about! And of course, I imagine the original intent back in the mid 90s was that this probably WAS in fact the Lion's actual helmet, and that it is just a matter of Primarch's becoming bigger than they were originally intended to be over the decades as the lore changes and expands.

 

Now I wish to briefly go on a tangent. Azrael sometimes is depicted as having hair, sometimes as bald. Similarly, I believe Sigismund is depicted as having hair in the early Horus Heresy novels, but by the time the (bald) model came out, he didn't. Now this is fine, Space Marines, like real people, are presumably capable of growing hair and having it cut. But it did get me thinking - with all the hormones and whatever else that Space Marines have different to regular people like you or me, do Space Marines grow hair faster or slower than regular humans? Or is it unaffected? As you can tell, I am focus on the REAL questions here.

 

It won't be a matter for my Minotaurs regardless, as I aim for them ALL to be helmeted (to dehumanise them and make them seem less heroic than helmetless Space Marines).

 

Something I found, which I had forgotten about, was my old Carcharodons. Since their Tactical Squads could replace their bolters with bolt pistols/chainswords, I actually got an Assault Squad kit - assembled them without jump packs, and gave them a Melta Gun to make clear this was a Tactical Squad.

 

I would have worked on these guys around 2015. I had plans of getting an Assault Terminator Squad (to be Tyberos' unit he could make troops) and a Land Raider Crusader next. I did actually buy them, but they ended up getting repurposed to my Minotaurs! I had plans for it to be a VERY small force - 2x 10 man Tactical Squads (with bolt pistols/chainswords instead of bolters), 1x 5 man Assault Terminator Squad accompanying Tyberos, 1x Land Raider Crusader, 2x Drop Pods, 1x Dreadnought, 1x Land Speeder.

 

I don't have plans to get the rest of the force anymore though, but never say never!

 

But I would like to eventually finish this squad and expand it to 10 men - and maybe mix in a couple of guys in older models of Power Armour - I am thinking two in Mark V, and one in Mark III. I could theoretically just use Tactical Squad models - I would have enough spare bolt pistols + chainswords to equip four more Space Marines, and then give the last squad member a heavy weapon.

 

Here are the two I had painted (from 2015 I think! Or maybe sometime in later 2014. Either way, it was before the 2015 Space Marine Assault Squad kit came out!)- I just need to clean up some of the Polynesian-influenced markings and I few other details I painted on there, but other than that am happy. If anyone knows anybody selling Carcharodons transfers, please drop me a message - I would be eager to finish off this unit properly!

 

And here are the three unpainted models - maybe I can  finish them once I remember what greys (and other dull colours) I was using!:

 

 

WHAT IS NEXT???

(^I wrote it in capitals because I am not sure how to change font size so I have headings haha)

 

Over the coming weeks, I aim to be painting a good number of Minotaurs, then sometime in the future finishing them off with the transfers, varnish and basing. I was planning to do a couple of squads after Christmas, but am having to dial back on that a bit to make time for some things I need to do to take care of my health. So I hope to do something, but can't guarantee it will be much.

 

I do have a stack of razorback/rhino boxes - I have four copies of this kit, and aim to build and paint these so I have 2x Razorbacks and 2x Rhinos, to be able to recreate some text from Imperial Armour vol. 2 (Second Edition) where an Inquisitor observed a Minotaurs mechanised charge during the Orphean War!

 

Unsure if these will be done straight away, but I am thinking I may like to at the very least assemble them back-to-back (when I paint them is a different question).

 

I would also like to take some time to discuss my Dark Angels ideas.

 

Before I saw the quality of painting on a good number of my Dark Angels today, I had big exciting ideas! But seeing them has killed my enthusiasm a little -so we will just wait and see how I feel about them.

 

But I had the thought: Get more Company Masters*, so I could run them and Azrael as the old Apocalypse "Masters of the Chapter" formation. With the theme of the 13th Black Crusade, I'm imagining my Dark Angels preparing for the final battle against the archenemy that may determine the fate of the Imperium itself, throwing everything they have at the traitors/forces of Chaos. This would see the Dark Angels having the vibe they had in 30k, as completely dangerous, and preparing for the Dreadwing-esque absolute destruction of the enemy using EVERYTHING they have in their arsenal. Into the heart of this final battle would teleport Azrael, four of his Company Masters gathered together, a command squad with either the Chapter Standard or one of the Sacred Standards being carried by Brother Bethor, and dozens of Deathwing Terminators and even Venerable Dreadnoughts accompanying them. 

 

*There once was a model I kitbashed with leftover parts - originally intended to use him as a Fallen Angel, but may replace his head to a fancier one, and give him a back banner. Then he can be a Company Master of a different company (other than the 5th, which my Dark Angels, like most people's, tend to be from), complete with appropriate company symbol.

 

I would like to get Ezekiel too - and once he is back in stock on the GW website, plan to pounce on making that purchase. I already have the Dark Vengeance librarian, but was thinking: Maybe another one too? If I could get one of those old Terminator Librarian models, for example, that would be pretty cool. I have Asmodai and the Dark Vengeance Interrogator Chaplain too - but maybe the 2015 plastic Interrogator Chaplain could be added too. All of this represents the leaders of the Chapter deploying together for this final battle.

 

And of course I would like to eventually add Sammael and Belial too - along with more Deathwing and Ravenwing units.

 

I realised: I want to theme this army around Apocalypse. Not in the same way as my Minotaurs are a huge army that, by the time it is done ,could only be fielded fully in Apocalypse. But rather, the Dark Angels have all the formations and over representation of heroes and powerful units that you see in Apocalypse.

 

I also had plans to expand the "greenwing" part of the army - add a Dreadnought, give them a Rhino, maybe add another Tactical Squad and another Predator, get a Techmarine.

 

EDIT: I also really like Damocles Command Rhinos. I just think they are cool. I was thinking of getting one for my Minotaurs, my friend suggested Dark Angels, so right now I am thinking maybe even they both get one each. But that's not yet determined.

 

I have thought about kitbashing together some Fallen Angels - then can go with the idea of, in the Imperium's darkest hour when they are needed the most, will the Dark Angels once again sacrifice all to go against the Fallen? The Fallen might even be in the same warzone - but what if the Dark Angels are deep in the most intense battle imaginable, and THEN they receive a report of a Fallen Angel elsewhere on the same planet - but not an imminent threat, unlike the forces the Dark Angels are battling at that instant. What shall they do then? This is an idea I would like to add into my 13th Black Crusade theme.

 

Its all up in the air about whether I will do ANY of that, but that is definitely a possibility of my Dark Angels.

 

 

Before I end this post, I would like to thank everyone who reads, everyone who comments, everyone who reacts - it all means so much. I genuinely think The Bolter & Chainsword is one of the best online communities. I wish to contribute in a positive way to that, and I want to thank you all for creating this environment where I feel this way. So thank you everyone. And I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! :)

Edited December 20, 2025 by Calibanite Knight Angel
Wanted to add comment about Damocles Command Rhinos

[Tallarn Commander]

Thank you for the walk down memory lane. Yes, you should definitely be proud of your younger self. I look forward to the various iterations of Codex Eye of Terror- and Orphean Wars-inspired models.

[Firedrake Cordova]

Always nice to see uncommon chapters like the Minotaurs. I think they look pretty reasonable.  Like you say, the Dark Angels aren't quite as nice as the Minotaurs, but if you go back and strip your older models every time you get better, then you won't finish may armies.  

 

There's some classic sculpts in there - I remember when Azrael/Asmoda/Ezekiel came out (they're all classic Jes Goodwin sculpts)

 

I would add that there's a third option with the Lion Helm - primarchs actually weren't any larger than regular space marines, and their size has been exaggerated through the myth of the ages to reflect their heroic deeds (otherwise known as the unreliable narrator).  

[Calibanite Knight Angel]

Happy new year everyone! I hope everyone reading this has had a nice Christmas/Holiday Season/start to 2026 :)

 

I am back to share the direction I intend to take now in the new year.

 

So I'm not sure if you guys could tell, but I was feeling rather... flat when I reviewed the quality of painting on my Dark Angels I completed when I was much younger. As such I've decided to put my 13th Black Crusade project on the back burner. I'm not abandoning it, but I think I will focus my energy elsewhere for now, gather my thoughts, and come back to it later. After all, I own a good number of Dark Angels already, I'll always have those available to me (regardless of anything else getting discontinued).

 

So that left me with the Minotaurs/Orphean War still as my main project, but looking for another side project. No lie, I have always been big on the Badab War (as you most likely can tell by now), so my first instinct was "complete multiple Badab War armies". And yes I would like to do this eventually, but it is a very full on project. The below is a list of the Badab War armies I would collect (most of which would just be small forces). It's insanely huge, and that right there is why I'm not focusing on it right now.

-Minotaurs (my main army I'm already collecting for Orpheus so doesn't really count)

-Astral Claws/Tyrant's Legion (I already have Huron, Valthex, a converted Sumatris, and a squad of 5 Terminators awaiting paint. So this would be one of the first I would do)

-Carcharodons (see above post)

-Red Scorpions (I have Carab Culln in Terminator Armour. I'm actually quite fond of these guys)

-Executioners

-Star Phantoms

-Lamenters

-Marines Errant

-Salamanders

 

That's why too much. I feel tired just writing all that! So no Badab War for now.

 

And so I thought to myself "What do I want to paint? What can I paint as a new army, where I can just enjoy myself and paint models I have always wanted to paint to the quality that I am capable of painting to in the modern times?"

 

Necrons, painted very basically entirely with Leadbelcher (and without highlights or any other painting techniques other than applying a single colour) seems perfect for my skill level!

 

But I'm already planning to get Necrons for my Orphean War project, so that rules those out.

 

So instead, I decided on the RED Space Marines.

 

One of my friends is into playing 3rd Edition, and he and I are planning to have games together in the future. I have to say, I am really fond of the 3rd Edition books (demonstrated above with my love for the Eye of Terror Codex), so I thought to myself: Yeah, I will build a Blood Angels army around the 3rd edition rules. And not just 3rd edition rules, but 3rd edition lore too!

 

I actually had the Shield of Baal: Deathstorm box from 2014. The one which includes Tyranids and Blood Angels (Captain Karlaen of the 1st Company, a Terminator Squad, a Death Company Squad, and a Death Company Dreadnought. I still have those models, but they are separate from this project).

 

So I have decided on a theme for my army: The Blood Angels 3rd Company, during the Third War for Armageddon! I'm EXTREMELY excited to be doing this army, and similar to me theming armies around the Orphean War, Badab War, 13th Black Crusade, etc, my historical wargamer side takes over and I thrive off being able to theme it around a really cool campaign from the lore. 

 

(Slight tangent, but the 3rd Edition Armageddon and Eye of Terror Codices really do feel like a precursor to the big Imperial Armour volumes and I realised how similar the open ended endings of the campaign books feel to, say IA 12: The Fall of Orpheus. This kind of stuff is definitely the corner of the 40k universe I most enjoy! I also think its interesting that this kind of book from mainstream GW made a comeback in 7th Edition. For example the aforementioned Shield of Baal.)

 

The army will (atleast initially) be themed around a force from 3rd Company, led by a Chaplain, following Captain Tycho's succumbing to the Black Rage and subsequent death at Hive Tempestora. This creates an interesting narrative hook for me: this company of Space Marines, finding themselves in one of the biggest ground wars there is, is suddenly without their leader. Leadership now falls to the other officers present. You have Sergeants of course, you have Chaplains (including Lemartes, according to Chapter Approved 2001).  Maybe you have Librarians too. So I have a strong vision of what the force will be: Battle Company Units, Death Company, Chaplains, and supporting vehicles.

 

The books I am using for rules/army list and lore are Codex Space Marines, Codex Blood Angels, Codex Armageddon, Chapter Approved 2001 (all of these are 3rd Edition).

 

Here is my first model for the army: My converted Chaplain!

 

I still need to use some green stuff to finish this model off, but I am really happy with him so far! He is made from the Blood Angels Chaplain with jump pack (the one that came out around a decade ago alongside the Angel's Blade supplement), which I bought today. I made the following modifications:

-Removed his jump pack and replaced it with a standard Space Marine power pack (I sourced it from the Assault Squad box which I bought off EBay for the completion of my Minotaurs Vanguard Veterans, as they will all be using Jump Packs anyway. Yes, this is a hint at something else I am working on).

-Modified his foot so he wasn't leaping off a rock (it makes less sense with no jump pack). I ended up cutting up and using the debris from Assault Squad kit (as my Vanguard Veterans will be directly on the bases, not on debris) to make his raised leg make... *some* sense.

-Moved his left pauldron onto his right shoulder. This is the one with the Chaplain symbol, and it seems to usually be depicted as being on a Chaplain's right shoulder. This required me to file down an exhaust vent on the power pack in order to make it fit.

-Re-angled the arm holding the pistol so it is less far back - it makes more sense if the Chaplain is leaping in mid air with a jump pack. I also re-angled the hand holding the pistol. And the Inferno Pistol was swapped for a Bolt Pistol from the Mark IV Space Marine box. I didn't use the other pauldron he came with (the Death Company one), instead giving him one from the Mark IV Space Marine box (which will have the Chapter symbol).

-I re-angled his head slightly. Whereas before I imagined he was leaping to attack an enemy, I now imagine him shouting something to his men before he leaps to attack an enemy (yes big difference haha).

 

I'm really pleased with him! He will be accompanied by his Death Company friends, all of whom will be on foot rather than have jump packs (but get a free Rhino thrown in). I'm a really big fan of the rules causing your Death Company to be a random size, with you rolling the dice to see how many Space Marines in your squads succumb to the Black Rage before the battle! Of course, having the Chaplain means I already get a few by default. But I was wondering - what happens if my Blood Angels are having a particularly bad day, and the Chaplain's Death Company unit exceeds 10 men and can't fit in the Rhino? Does this mean I have to lose the Rhino? Or do I cap the number of Death Company at 9, and any more who succumb are removed (the same as when you don't have any more Death Company models), and are considered to have been given the Emperor's Mercy? I would be interested to know what people think!

 

For fun, here is what the Google AI when I searched about it said:

 

Yeah that didn't really say anything. I guess we can assume that the Google AI hasn't been trained on 3rd Edition 40k rules yet! 

 

I was thinking about whether to use the modern 32mm bases that Space Marines come with, or the classic 25mm (I think that was their dimensions?) bases. My friend thought 32mm looks better, so I decided to go with that (These will never be a tournament army, and I don't care about what base sizes people have their models on - just so long as it looks cool and you are happy with your models, that's what matters to me!). Something that will be a nice change is that the army will include some helmetless Space Marines! One of my rules for myself is that helmetless Marines are reserved for more "heroic" chapters (or ones that can present as such), while armies I paint from less pleasant Chapters such as the Minotaurs or Carcharodons are all helmeted - to make them feel less heroic and less humanised! But with the Blood Angels being who they are, there will definitely be some bare-headed Astartes in there! That being said, any Death Company (with the exception of Tycho if I get a model of him) will be helmeted - these guys aren't giving off that big "hero" vibe as much anymore!

 

I'm planning the force to include the Chaplain + Death Company + Rhino, some Tactical Squads, Assault Squads, Furioso Dreadnought and a Baal Predator. Not meant to be a competitive list, just a fun project to work on! And at some point may get Lemartes and Tycho (in Death Company colours) too, if I can get a hold of their models! I was also thinking: This will be a great chance to revisit my Assault on Black Reach Orks, and re-organise them according to 3rd Edition Rules! They can be themed around the Third War for Armageddon too, and be an OpFor for my Blood Angels!

 

I do have a question for the Blood Angels experts out there before I go: I aim to include the squad number markings for any Tactical/Assault/Devastator Squads in the army. The 3rd Edition Codex does a good job of showing the markings for each squad (Squad 1-10). But it doesn't explain what squad type each number relates to in a Battle Company. Would Squads #1-6 be Tactical Squads, #7-8 be Assault Squads, #9-10 be Devastator Squads, or are the squads numbered differently?

 

Thanks in advance! I also appreciate the replies I get - thanks guys, you all are great and I enjoy being part of this community!

 

(And don't worry, more Minotaurs coming soon, I have gotten some more painting done in the background :) )

Edited January 2 by Calibanite Knight Angel

[Tallarn Commander]

Back in 3rd it was always fun watching the Blood Angels player roll for the black rage. I was rooting for them even though the more Space Marines who succumbed meant a harder time for me! 

 

I look forward to watching your Blood Angels develop. Yep, a typical 3rd edition 3rd Company of whatever Space Marines chapter would indeed dedicate Squads 1 to 6 to a tactical role, 7 and 8 to an assault role, and 9 and 10 to a devastator role. But there are a lot of reasons to change that: the captain might want to confuse the enemy, the chapter might do their own thing, and I think some Space Marine chapters might have just worn their company number way back in the 1990s (?). 

 

Red is a blast to paint. Over the years I have painted 3 red armies (the Blood Wolves, a Khornate CSM warband; the Dooooomfevers, a Nurgle CSM warband,; and Count Tito's Doooomguard, a Vampire Counts army for Fantasy). You will enjoy it!

 

 

[Calibanite Knight Angel]

Hey it's me again! (The mysterious Calibanite Knight Angel)

 

In staying consistent with myself, I am here to talk about some stuff that is completely different to what I was talking about last time - and even is different from what I teased coming next! (Those Minotaurs Vanguard Veterans are still coming, don't you worry).

 

Last week I decided I wanted to get some terrain. I really liked the terrain we saw in GW publications back in the day, I thought it was great. That was terrain from something like 20 years ago. This isn't to dismiss the new terrain kits, I'm sure a lot of people love them, but I do think that I'm less enticed by them because (a) they are far more expensive than their older counter parts (I miss the Cities of Death ruins), and (b) it seems that everything we see in a GW publication is a product that they sell - and I feel like their modern terrain kits all have an aesthetic that to me seems to be... not quite what I'm into, especially when that makes up 100% of the scenery we see.

 

But that's no issue! Fortunately there's some great MDF kits made by other companies that I have purchased and will fit in great, and I'm real excited to get those put together and painted! I went to an Aquarium, purchased some plastic fish tank plants that I am going to turn into jungle terrain (can be used both for the planets in the Orphean War, as well as Armageddon's equatorial jungles) - can't go wrong with using an Aquarium to obtain wargames terrain! Also been using cork, foam, etc to make terrain too. I look back at, say, 3rd edition era 40k terrain - and it just looks really cool to me! So definitely excited for this to be the route to go with for my terrain. And I think what I'm trying to say is: There's many ways you can go about the 40k hobby. GW creates a range of great models, but that is by no means the full extent of what is out there, and since the people I know in the 40k space are like me in that they are just trying to enjoy hobbying their way, I think I am in a lucky position where I have more freedom and flexibility.

 

I also had a thought I felt like sharing. I'm jumping between a lot of different models and 40k projects. But with me digging deep into my backlog (which it alone could sustain me for a long time), it's nice. I am legitimately having fun, and have the freedom to one day be working on Minotaurs, the next putting together that Blood Angels Chaplain I showed you last time, then be onto making terrain. Sure, it might take longer to get projects finished, but it substantially increases my enjoyment. And I think that is what is most important: While I can't speak for everyone, most of us in this community aren't doing 40k to get paid, we're doing it for fun as a hobby. And I think finding the ways to enjoy it so that it is as fun as possible for you is a great thing! Why, I really like sharing my thoughts (thus why you get so many of these stream of consciousness posts from me on this thread) and in general engaging with the Bolter & Chainsword community, so you guys are actually contributing to my enjoyment of the hobby in a substantial way! :)

 

*checks list of what he wanted to say*

 

Alright, who remembers these guys? (Hint: one of them is in my profile picture)

 

THE DARK ANGELS LEGION

 

I still like 30k. My Dark Angels Legion are another army I want to get back to - at some point. Now two models that I was GOING TO have in there have now gone back to my Minotaurs (Predator Executioner and Storm Eagle - I definitely bought atleast one of those for my Minotaurs, possibly both, before intending to use them for 30k, before ultimately deciding that no, they are for my Minotaurs and that's final), maybe I will get more for my Dark Angels (if I can bring myself to assemble the Storm Eagle TWICE), maybe not. Funny enough, the last model I was working on for these guys a couple of years ago was The Lion (beautiful model). I had bought magnets so I could magnetise his head (so could alternate between helmeted and unhelmeted) and weapons (so he could switch between his sword and chainsword). That was the first time I ever bought magnets for wargaming miniatures, and I was daunted to the point where that is why I haven't continued working on him (still haven't magnetised anything yet to this day, but want to change that). He's a model I would love to finish.

 

Today, I was feeling in the mood to see what's up with 30k. I decided to purchase this:

 

I picked it up for the lore and because I had heard there were kitbashed models in there (it's a kitbashed whirlwind) which I was interested to see. It was ok. The funny thing is, I don't actually own any rules for 3rd edition 30k (other than this campaign book). Now I have heard that there are significant reductions to wargear options so that you can only take what the model comes with (which I believe is more like 40k these days from what I have heard?). Truthfully, this is a bit of a turn off, though its easy to work around - my friends and I would quite simply just house rule in the wargear options/units most likely. The funny thing is, I have the 2nd edition books (core rules and loyalist Legiones Astartes army book), but I have never played a game of 2nd edition! And obviously I still have my 1st edition books/the 40k rules they spun off from. So I can play either of those editions any time I want with my Dark Angels army, provided I have someone to play against. Perhaps I will get 3rd one day, perhaps not, but it's actually a really nice feeling that I have this one army that isn't going anywhere, and I have multiple different versions of the rules I can use to play it with, depending on what takes the fancy of my opponent and I! 

 

I don't really know where I was going with all this, but I think overall it's nice to reflect on the freedom to go about the hobby in different ways and choose how you want to enjoy it - whether that is using models from a range of companies, jumping between different projects at your leisure, using house rules, or even jumping between different editions of the same game!

[Calibanite Knight Angel]

Hey everyone, thought I would post an update here - explain where I'm at and loop you all in :)

 

I haven't worked any more on my 3rd War for Armageddon Blood Angels. But I have been assembling a lot (by my standards, not by most people's standards, which would be more) of miniatures recently! Got some armies in the works that I am excited for everyone to see (focusing on the assembly part, then will shift to painting mode at some point).

 

My Minotaurs haven't been forgotten - I don't have any more painted yet, but I have been focusing on getting more kits (whilst they are still available). Here is one such kit that I have wanted probably since I was 9 (this would have been 2008 or 2009), and have finally assembled (except for its Storm Bolter - will do that on the weekend). The Whirlwind.

 

I was thinking of magnetising its missile options so I could alternate them (a trick I recently learnt how to do when assembling a Horus Heresy character I will share later), but ultimately I didn't have the energy and just decided to go with these ones (I forget what they are called. Honestly this is the first time since I was 9 that I have given much thought to what missiles to model the Whirlwind with). It is fun readjusting the missile launchers for now, but we will see how long until I get tired of that...

 

Fortunately, once I get to painting, there is a colour scheme from Imperial Armour vol. 10 that I can refer back to (fun fact: I'm pretty sure the Whirlwind depicted was that different type - I forget the name -that Forge World used to make?)

 

Another model which I have on order from Games Workshop is the classic Land Raider (it will join my existing Land Raider Crusader, and I hope to eventually get a Land Raider Achilles, even if it is a 3D printed one).

 

Also based on the Mars pattern Rhino chassis and sitting in my motor pool, waiting for assembly, is four of the Razorback box (which will be assembled as 2x Rhinos and 2x Razorbacks). I'm considering just assembling and painting them all together, as this may be quicker?

 

 

Over on the Horus Heresy side of things, I have been thinking about scratchbuilding this model of Stormbird:

 

^Does anyone know where this art comes from?? I'd love to know. Is it official or fan-made?

 

Anyway, I think it would be great, and really tie into that old school 40k aesthetic. Not for gaming by any means (though I'm sure the people I would be playing  with wouldn't care if I ran it as the Sokar Pattern), but would look awesome, and I'm big on all that older tech from the Great Crusade era that we don't see in 40k. I feel a Stormbird like this embodies the difference between the Legiones Astartes and the Adeptus Astartes (am I correct in assuming "Adeptus Astartes" refers to the post-Heresy chapters? Please correct me if I am mistaken). If anyone has any tips on making one, please let me know (3D printing, whilst great, isn't necessarily something I have a heap of access to, but that's not to say never).

 

The Stormbird is another of my projects that may or may not happen, we will just have to see.

 

Anyway, thanks for reading :)

 

[Firedrake Cordova]

iFelix says it's an illustration from an old White Dwarf.

[Grotsmasha]

1 hour ago, Calibanite Knight Angel said:

Over on the Horus Heresy side of things, I have been thinking about scratchbuilding this model of Stormbird:

 

There's a vid on YouTube where someone did this. I'll see if I can dig out a linky.

 

EDIT: FW's pattern Rhino chassis were the Deimos pattern, which are now the plastic Heresy range.

Edited March 5 by Grotsmasha

[W.A.Rorie]

1 hour ago, Grotsmasha said:

 

There's a vid on YouTube where someone did this. I'll see if I can dig out a linky.

 

EDIT: FW's pattern Rhino chassis were the Deimos pattern, which are now the plastic Heresy range.

 

I found a link to a blog with images from Games day 2009 here

 

 I know I had pics of that on old computer too. 

[Grotsmasha]

9 minutes ago, W.A.Rorie said:

 

I found a link to a blog with images from Games day 2009 here

 

 I know I had pics of that on old computer too. 

That's the one, here's the linky, 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7CQI5UvAD4

 

[W.A.Rorie]

@BulldogUK had some amazing stuff.

[Calibanite Knight Angel]

Hello, I'm back sooner than expected - I got distracted from what I was working on by the prospect of doing some kitbash/conversion projects!

 

I've always been one of those people, who, when I read about characters in the Horus Heresy novels, has wanted to then recreate those characters as faithfully as possible. Fortunately, some of those characters have models. Others don't. And some have models that are fine, but I want to take my own shot at them.

 

So I have marathoned getting both of the below models assembled (most likely will use green stuff to clean up gaps, but I consider them pretty much assembled at this point)

:

 

 

 

First up, we have Captain Remus Ventanus of the Ultramarines 4th Company, the Saviour of Calth.

 

 

Background: So I've been a Ventanus fan ever since I read "Know No Fear", he's one of my favourite characters in the 40k universe. 

 

Around a decade ago, there was a Forge World "Ultramarines Legion Herald" available while stocks last in GW stores. My belief is that this model WAS intended to be Ventanus (the wargear matched, and he even had the number "IV" presumably for the 4th, i.e. Ventanus' unit, on his armour), but something went wrong belong the way and they pushed it out with a different head. Or something.

 

Anyway, I snatched one of these up at the time, with a plan to convert it into Ventanus. How would I do this? Well that's simple. By also getting Brother Corbulo of the Blood Angels (who I felt has a resemblance to the art of Ventanus), and using his head. So I bought him too. And I had plans for other changes too.

 

And for whatever reasons I never got that kitbash done. Some people said it wasn't possible, and I think that deterred teenage me, who hadn't done a conversion like this yet at that point.

 

But then this weekend, I have gotten access to some more of my old stuff again - including the pieces needed for the conversion! 

 

So I got to work. The head is from Brother Corbulo - I removed his head, but since the collar of his armour connects to his head, I needed to cut away at that too, and shape it so it looks like skin. Then I removed the "neck" from the base of the Ultramarines Herald's head, and glued it to the bottom of Ventanus' head. But before I could attach it to the body, I needed to get some extra height for the head - but not too much. So I used some plastic shavings to create a very slight increase in height for the head to sit on. And like that I attached it to the body of the Herald.

 

 

Ventanus is often depicted in art as having a spiked shoulder pad on the shoulder of the same arm which the Herald is holding the sword with. Therefore, I used a shoulder pad from the plastic Mark IV Tactical Squad kit to represent this as much as I could. And therefore cut off the sword arm above the elbow. I cut down a plastic Mark IV arm to replace this. Then glued the shoulder pad on top. But had to shave down the shoulder of the arm so it would sit on a good angle.

 

 

While the Herald has a cape, Ventanus doesn't really seem to be depicted with this in artwork. So I instead gave him a plastic Mark IV power pack with no cape attached. This didn't fit with the edge of the shoulder pad on the arm holding the standard. So I shaved down the spherical part on that side of the power pack, and also shaved down the raised edge of the shoulder pad (in as subtle a way as possible, mainly obscured on any angle it would be noticeable) to make it fit comfortably.

 

Lastly, I gave him a holstered Bolt Pistol (again from the plastic Mark IV kit). I had to shave down part of a raised piece of armour on his leg to make this look natural.

 

All said and done, I'm really proud of this model! This isn't to knock it, but I don't love the official Ventanus model we ended up getting, and so even if that model had already been available when I purchased the parts to do this conversion, I still think I made the right choice by getting to make my Ventanus model be like how I personally envision the character (basing it around the existing art).

 

 

 

Here is a question that I was hoping I could get some help with (as I don't have the novels on me right now): Ventanus is accompanied by his right-hand-man Sergeant Selaton, who I would also like to convert/kitbash to accompany him. Does anyone remember if there are descriptions of (a) descriptions of his appearance, (b) descriptions of his armour, and (c) descriptions of his wargear loadout in either "Know No Fear" or "Calth That Was"? Thanks in advance to anyone who has the books handy or remembers.

 

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Who is that other guy?

 

A project I have always wanted to do (and keep coming back to every few years but never get around to before moving onto something else) is collecting/kitbashing/converting the characters from Isstvan III (from both the novels and the Forge World black books).

 

One such character I have had an idea for how I would kitbash for a while is Sergeant Nero Vipus, leader of Squad Locasta of the XVI Legion Astartes, the Sons of Horus Luna Wolves.

 

Now this guy is Loken's right-hand-man, and whilst Squad Locasta is referred to as a Tactical Squad, "Galaxy in Flames" refers to them as the "...veterans of Locasta" (which we could infer anyway). Therefore, I feel like these guys should be represented as a Veteran unit (closest equivelant on the table top would be a Veteran Tactical Squad - also lets remember they have a Flamer in their squad - however the game is just a representation and so obviously there will be exceptions to the unit organisation the game lays out). And because they are characters to me, I decided that Vipus should have the helmet from the Space Marine Legion Champion (side note: I had always planned to use that model for a kitbash anyway. I felt that Corswain would fill that role of being "champion" in a Dark Angels army, and purchased the set specifically for the Master of Signal. That being said, I may get that kit again in the future, as both models are VERY nice). I used a Mark IV space marine for most of the parts.

 

 

 

"Galaxy In Flames" makes reference to Vipus carrying a Bolter and Chainsword (the name of this very site!).

 

"Vipus snapped around suddenly, bolter up and finger on the trigger".

 

"Loken cut a gory crescent through the bodies pressing in on him, Vipus matching him stroke for stroke with his long chainsword".

 

Other than that, there are no references to Vipus' loadout. I considered also giving him a holstered Bolt Pistol, but I felt that was overdoing it and also like the idea of Isstvan III loyalists having been giving the equipment needed to complete what they believed to be the mission, but not being super well equipped with extra wargear - to give them the underdog vibe. So a simple bolter/chainsword combo and nothing else felt right to how I imagined the character.

 

 

(Just noticed the leg mould line now - will have to do something about it).

 

Vipus has a mechanical hand. I used the mechanical hand from Deathwatch Captain Artemis for this (I have my own plans for that model). Apart from cutting off the hand attached to the bolter and replacing it with this one, I also cut down the piece of armour on the arm that covers some of the hand to allow it to fit.

 

I'm pleased with Nero Vipus too!

 

 

OK so I have another question for you guys. Apart from Vipus, "Galaxy In Flames" makes reference to Brother Casto, who carries the squad's flamer. Apart from these two,  the novel makes no mention of any other squad members or even the size of the squad. I was initially thinking ten Astartes in the squad, but considering Loken joins them in the Drop Pod, would this mean they have to be nine or less? What do you guys think would be the most lore-accurate squad size for Locasta? Also, do you think the squad had a second special/heavy weapon (e.g. Missile Launcher), or do you get the vibe the rest of them all have Bolters? I'm still deciding how I will do it, but would appreciate any insights that you guys have!

 

 

Thanks for reading :)

Edited March 8 by Calibanite Knight Angel

[Calibanite Knight Angel]

Previously, from the Calibanite Knight Angel...

 

A session of undercoating my Horus Heresy models ended in disaster when the paint didn't go on right. In despair, I believed the models ruined, however was consoled by knowing it IS possible to strip the paint from them.

 

Now, almost seven years later, I am finally doing it! Currently in progress, but the results look promising so far. No lie, this killed a lot of my momentum back in 2019, so I am glad to finally be back on track.

 

I actually had a mishap when painting a model last night that caused his sword to snap off. I was stressed, and felt if I couldn't fix it then and there, it would kill my enthusiasm again like the mishap of 2019. Fortunately, it super glued back together :) and I was more determined this time too: Resolving to keep pushing on no matter what. 

 

 

I've been assembling quite a few models lately that I can't wait for you guys to see once they are painted, and am now finally getting to my Legion Reconnaissance Squad after owning the models for a decade. This is a unit I've been quite excited to assemble recently, and have put a great deal of thought into their loadout (I am arming my units so they can be fielded using either Horus Heresy 1st or 2nd edition army lists). I also was browsing @Spagunk's Horus Heresy Blood Angels army (this is one of my favourite 30k armies I have seen, you guys should check it out if you haven't already), and they had a really cool Reconnaissance Squad! They had equipped the Recon Sergeant with an Inferno Pistol, which got me thinking about how I could equip my own Sergeant.

 

Well, I have wanted to have a Volkite Serpenta in my force somewhere for a real long time (was thinking of getting the Dark Angels Legion Praetor in power armour and replacing his Bolter/Shield options with a Serpenta, still might do this), and decided the Recon Sergeant would be a great chance to do this! It's from the old Mark II Power Weapons sprue. I gave him a Chainsword and accompanying army from the plastic Mark IV Tactical Squad, a shoulder pad from the old resin Dark Angels Legion Mark IV shoulder pads sprue, and lastly cut the knife off of his backpack. That's because he already has the Chainsword. While I feel the knife, being more subtle, could be used alongside the Chainsword if stealth is needed, I just didn't like the visual of this squad sergeant having two melee weapons.

 

 

Stay tuned for more updates. Now that I am getting back into the swing of painting miniatures, I hope to give more updates where you guys get to see new fully painted models! But I'm very slow - my current challenge for myself is to paint a unit or a vehicle/character model each month. But I will still keep posting when I feel I have a topic I wish to discuss - I really enjoy talking about my approach to and relationship with the hobby here!

 

Lastly, I wanted to give a shoutout to @Lord Marshal - the other day I posted a query about using the Legions Imperialis campaign books as a lore resource even as someone who doesn't play the game. Lord Marshal was very encouraging, and as such I picked up "The Great Slaughter" for a good price when I was shopping for hobby supplied yesterday, and after looking through it I've also now ordered "The Devastation of Tallarn" for cheap off EBay! If I enjoy that one too I might get the Mechanicum one as well :) I'm interested in using the Beta Garmon one as a companion to the Horus Heresy 2nd edition Campaign book about that battle, and I'm excited that there is finally a Horus Heresy campaign book in some shape or form about Tallarn - I remember back in the days of Horus Heresy 1st edition when the Tallarn: Executioner novella was released, I was hoping that Tallarn would eventually get a black book dedicated to it! (For those who are interested, the campaigns that didn't get Black Books in 1st edition that I wish had were Martian Civil War, Tallarn, Beta Garmon, Solar War, Siege of Terra).

 

 

Thanks for reading :)

[Calibanite Knight Angel]

MARCH PROGRESS

 

Hey everyone, here is some painting I did in March.

 

I: CORSWAIN

 

 

I painted Corswain for my Dark Angels Legion. One of my favourite characters in all of the 40k universe, and my favourite Dark Angel by far. Due to my slowness as a painter he took me a real long time - but I am immensely proud of him, and consider him to be the best model I have painted yet! He isn't 100% complete - I need to finish working on his base, and then varnish him (I have already varnished his head options).

 

Apologies in advance for the blurriness of photos.

 

 

 

 

Cor represents a bunch of firsts for me - my first time painting fur, for example (I was real pleased with how that turned out). It is also the first time I have used magnets on a model. This allows me to swap between his helmeted and un-helmeted heads, and I am really pleased with the end result!

 

 

 

The work on his base and the varnishing should be complete by the end of the week! Then I will have to start working on my next model for my I Legion army!

 

II: WHITE SCARS

 

 

With my recent purchase of Legions Imperialis rules, I felt the temptation of painting a force for it. Being a fan of the White Scars in the Horus Heresy (I recently finally finished reading "Scars"), and enjoying them being present for the Siege of Terra, I decided I would paint a late Heresy-themed force of the V Legion!

 

I've only painted a couple of bases so far - a Contemptor Dreadnought of the Uhaan Solban, and a base of Cataphractii Terminators. I'm excited to see where this project will take me!

 

 

I found painting at Epic Scale to be a challenge, but also liberating - instead of trying to paint the models to the same standard as regular 40k/30k models, I would just paint them to a "good enough" standard - and then I ended up pleasantly surprised when I realised I actually did quite like the outcomes!

 

An interesting element is looking at reference artwork and painted miniatures, and then thinking about how to adapt the paint scheme to a smaller scale - so rather than literally being a scaled down version of how I would paint regular scale Horus Heresy White Scars, the idea was that they are more a representation of the feel of the White Scars. For example, that's why I went with less white on the Cataphractii's helmets and torsos and emphasised gold more.

 

I would like to work towards having a Legion Demi-Company and a Legion Sky-Hunter Phalanx, and from there see what I get next! But I am starting by painting what I like, and then turning it into a list for gameplay later on.

 

Thankyou for reading :)

[Firedrake Cordova]

Good job on Corswain. I like the idea of the magnetised head options.  

 

I can't imagine painting Epic-scale infantry - the Aeronautica Imperialis models are bad enough!